Student Claims She Was Harassed by Peers After Posting Photo with Mike Pence

A Scripps College student claims she was harassed by her peers after posting a photo with of herself with Vice President Mike Pence.

A student at Scripps College, an all-women’s college in Claremont, California, is facing a backlash from her peers after posting a photo of herself with Vice President Mike Pence on social media.

McKenzie Deutsch detailed her experiences in a column for the Claremont Independent. One of her peers reportedly responded to the photo by asking her how she could stand next to someone who is a “threat to human rights everywhere.” Another claimed that the act of taking the photo with the vice president “constitutes direct violence and oppression against marginalized groups.”

“Did you manage to ask him why he thinks women are second-class citizens?” another peer asked. “How many LBGTQ folks do you need to help send to conversion therapy in exchange for reproductive rights from Pence?”

Another student resorted to name-calling, commenting only one word: “b*tch.”

Deutsch argues that respect for students with right-leaning beliefs at Scripps College, along with the rest of the Claremont College consortium, is at an all-time low. “Shortly after posting the photo, I began receiving vicious comments and private messages accusing me of not caring about LGBTQ rights and attacking me for getting anywhere near the Vice-President,” she wrote. “Close friends and distant acquaintances alike lashed out in fury, subjecting me to lectures, rants, and name-calling—all while ignoring the photo’s plainly apolitical context.”

“How will we ever be able to have adult conversations if no one is ever willing to listen to those who have opposing philosophies? How can we coexist when we write off our political opponents — as well as those who dare to take photos with them — as morally bankrupt?” Deustch asks.